


Rapunzel Retold

by LadyCosmos



Category: D.Gray-man
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fairy Tale, Angst, Happy Ending, Laven Spring Gift Exchange 2016, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-02
Updated: 2016-06-02
Packaged: 2018-07-11 17:05:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,416
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7061779
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyCosmos/pseuds/LadyCosmos
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Lavi discovers Allen, cursed and locked away in a tower.  But with his secret hidden, Allen puts their relationship at risk.  Can they overcome the odds and make things work?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Rapunzel Retold

**Author's Note:**

> This is for @tearful for the 2016 Laven exchange. She wanted a fairy tale AU that was a mix of angst and happy, but SFW.
> 
> I picked Rapunzel for the fairy tale and modified the story to work with the D.Gray-man plot. I hope you enjoy the story and are happy with your exchange fic!

A long time ago, in a land far, far away lived a boy.  The boy was sweet of temperament and strong of will.  His smile was known to brighten the day of anyone who gazed upon it.  However, the boy had a secret.

From the window of his bed, he overlooked the beautiful garden of a mysterious man.  This man grew extraordinary plants that seemed to terrorize anyone who came by.  But past those plants grew delicious cabbage.  It was these cabbages that were the boy’s secret because every night, he snuck out of the orphanage to eat one.

He had been warned – many times – not to disturb the strange man’s garden; but he cabbages proved to be too tempting and too delicious to ignore.  So, against the better judgement of his elders, the boy returned to the cabbage field for another meal.

“Oi, kid.” The boy froze, the cabbage already pulled from the garden. “And just what do you think you’re doing with my cabbages?”

Surprised, the boy dropped the cabbage and tried to run away.  The man grabbed the boy by the collar of his jacket and pulled him back.

“Look, you’ve been taking my cabbages for a while now – don’t shake your head at me, brat – so the only thing for you to do is pay me back.” The man stared at the boy for a long while before taking a slow draw on a cigarette. “You’re not going to like it, but I have a way for you to repay me.”

~~

The forest was deep and dark and easy to lose your way in should you not know your way through it.

Lavi was hopelessly lost.

“Waaa…Gramps is gonna kill me if I’m late.” he moaned as he cut his way through the undergrowth.  Maybe if he hadn’t been paying so much attention to his book and had focused on the path, he wouldn’t be in this predicament.  But, he hadn’t and here he was, struggling to find his way through a forest that seemed to want to eat him alive.

“What are with these plants, anyway?” Lavi griped as he pried one off his leg. “I’m not plant food!”

“Oi!  Timcampy get back here!”

Lavi froze.  Was there someone else out here?  Could they be lost, too? 

“Hey!  No fair!  That was my muffin!  Noooo!!!”

Carefully winding his way through the woods, Lavi followed the voice.  Who else would be this deep in the forest?  And what were the chances that someone else became lost in the same place, at the same time as Lavi?  So with extreme caution, he approached what appeared to a clearing.  Inside the clearing stood a tall tower.  There were no doors and only one window.  The window faced Lavi’s hiding space in the forest and he could see a young man flailing in vain at something from the window sill.

Intrigued, Lavi crouched further in the brush to watch.

“Tim!  How dare you!  I was saving that and it was going to be delicious and wonderful.  Ahhh…I’m so hungry.” The young man flopped over the window sill in defeat as a gold bird fluttered around his head.  An arm listlessly swatted it away. “Go away.  I hate you.”

The bird nestled into the man’s bright white hair.  The man laughed and raised a hand to casually pet the bird.

“All right, you win.  Let’s go see what other food you took from me.” As the young man rose from the window, Lavi was dazzled by the brightest, most beautiful smile he had ever seen.  His heart skipped and he forgot how to breathe for a long moment as the man disappeared into the darkness of the tower.

As day turned into twilight, Lavi stayed in the brush, waiting for just one more glimpse of the young man with the beautiful smile.  But as twilight turned to night and the window in the tower closed, Lavi realized that even if he was able to see that smile once more, it wouldn’t be enough.  So as he made his way home in the dark, Lavi memorized the path so he could find it again the next day.

~~

The way to the tower was through the dark forest.  It ran alongside the murky river and under a crumbling mountain.  It involved skirting the lair of a she-wolf with new cubs and dodging the hidden nettles.  But every day for the past month, Lavi had made the journey to sit for hours under the cover of the forest brush as he waited for the young man to look out the window and smile.

He learned to bring food and books with him as he waited for even the smallest of glimpses from his spot.  The gold bird had noticed him one time and came to steal some of his food.  It was only then that Lavi realized that the bird wasn’t a bird but some kind of flying golem.  Curious, he put some of his food on a rock for it to eat and, much to Lavi’s surprise and delight, it had eaten it right away.  Of course, he didn’t realize that this became an open invitation to invade his food sack and he quickly found that his rations for the day would disappear if not locked away or hidden.

He quietly watched as the man sat on the window sill and gazed across the forest.  He memorized every detail of the smile that lit the man’s face when he got excited or when the golem – Timcampy, Lavi reminded himself – brought him some of Lavi’s lunch. 

It wasn’t enough.

Watching from a distance; never knowing when or if he would see the other man.  It was driving him crazy.  Logically, Lavi knew he should walk away – forget the path to the tower, forget the memories of the young man and leave.  Never return.  But each day, his heart sang and his lips lifted in a smile as he made his treacherous journey and got a glimpse of that smile.

What he would give to be able to talk to the man.  To be able to see him face to face and have that smile directed at him.  What he would give to-

“Hey, brat!” A rough voice shattered the silence in the glen and made Lavi to retreat deeper into the brush.  Had he been found out? “Let me up, kid, or you won’t get your dessert.”

“I’m 17!” The young man appeared at the window, annoyance plastered clear across his face as he leaned out the window. “Stop calling me a kid.”

There was a tense silence as the two faced off.

Then, a thick cloud of smoke rose as the man at the bottom of the tower said, “Fine, beansprout.”

“UGH!” The young man groaned.  A thick rope swung down from the window, just barely missing the man below. “One day, I’ll hit you and I hope it kills you.”

The man just blew out more smoke as he grabbed hold of the rope and let himself be pulled up.  Lavi gaped in amazement as the young man effortlessly pulled the other man up.  The two disappeared into the tower, and the rope with them.

Lavi waited, unsure if he had been seen or if it was safe to move.  He also wanted to know more about the man he had never seen before.  Was he the father of the young man in the tower?  Was he a guardian?  Or worse…was he a kidnapper?  Could he be keeping the young man as hostage?

As endless situations circled Lavi’s head, the man reappeared.  More quickly than Lavi thought possible, the man belayed down the tower and slowly disappeared into the forest.  After a few minutes, Lavi carefully left his spot and hurried home.

So now he knew there was a way up the tower.  Perhaps, just perhaps, he could trick the young man into letting him up as well.

~~

Dawn was slow to arrive.

After a night of tossing and turning, exasperated sighing, and finally being kicked out of the bedroom with a sound “ _Go doing something useful if you’re not going to sleep!”_ , Lavi quickly packed a large travel sack with food and scurried out the door before the old panda could stop him.  He’d been neglecting his duties for too long and he knew, sooner or later, it was going to bite him in the ass.  But, that was for future Lavi to worry about, he rationalized.

He hurried through the forest, his heart pounding the closer he got to the clearing where the tower that held the young man with the beautiful smile was trapped.  As he came upon the clearing, he paused behind a tree to catch his breath and his courage.

“Come on, what’s the worst that could happen?” Peering around the tree, Lavi took a deep breath, steeled himself, and headed for the tower.  Once at the base, he peered up at the open window.  It was now or never.

“Hey, brat.  Let me up, kid, or you won’t get your dessert.”

The rope came hurtling from the window and just narrowly missed hitting Lavi.  He fought to keep from screeching in surprise.

“Oops.  I guess I missed again.”

Swallowing around the lump in his throat, Lavi grabbed the rope and tugged, waiting to be pulled up.  Although he had seen how strong the man in the tower was, it took his breath away to feel himself being effortlessly pulled to the tower’s window.  As the window came within reach, Lavi’s impatience grew too strong; grabbing the windowsill, Lavi pulled himself into the tower and right into the wide-eyed stare of the young man he’s been watching for so long.

“Yo!  I’m Lavi.”

~~

Looking back, Lavi was surprised he wasn’t pushed out the window right away.  Who would have been excited to see a complete stranger – albeit an incredibly handsome stranger - jump through their window after impersonating their supposed guardian?  Lavi couldn’t blame the guy for being scared and possibly trying to kill him.  So it hadn’t been a great first impression.  But after a rough introduction, everything smoothed over after Lavi offered his food.

“Hey, I – wait! – I just…can we maybe talk about this over lunch?” Lavi proposed, ducked behind a thick oak table as a knife went flying over his head. “I BROUGHT SWEETS!”

The violence ceased for a moment.

“What kind?” The young man – with not only a beautiful smile but gorgeous silver eyes which Lavi immediately fell in love with – asked.  Peeping over the table, Lavi carefully reached into his sack and pulled out a sticky bun wrapped in baker’s paper.  He waved the offering over his head.

“Here!  I have more!” The gold golem swooped in to grab the baked good and took it to his owner.  The man positively lit up and sweetened up as he ate the gooey sweet.

“This is delicious!  I’ve never tasted anything so good.  You have more?!  I’m so sorry for trying to kill you.  Honest mistake.  Can’t trust anyone these days.” Before Lavi knew it, the young man was seated pleasantly at his side, those gorgeous silver eyes entreating him for more. “Oh, I’m Allen.”

Lavi smiled and offered him a piece of pie.

“Nice to meet you, Allen.”

~~

Days slipped by into weeks.  Weeks turned into months.  As the seasons turned, Lavi continued to visit Allen, tucked away in his tower and a secret to everyone.

As predicted, his slacking on his work finally caught up with him and bit him in the ass.  For an entire week, Lavi had to stay in the office with Bookman and catch up on his records.  His mind drifted often during that week and it was only through practice and muscle memory that he was able to catch up on all his tasking and keep from adding additional time to his punishment.  But one week away was a week too long.

Once all work had been caught up, Lavi darted from the office as quickly as possible, loaded up on sweets and food, and hurried through the forest.

Allen, it turned out, had a very affectionate side.  It had taken a number of trips until he fully trusted Lavi and looked forward to more than just the food from his visits.  But Lavi was patient and just being able to see the young man he had admired from afar up close was enough.  Their acquaintance turned into friendship turned into something more as the seasons passed and Lavi spent more time with him.

There were days he brought his books and sat in the tower reading while Allen entertained himself with a deck of playing cards or cooked for them.  There were other days when they did nothing but curl up on Allen’s bed together as Lavi told him stories or taught him about the stars.  Then, there were days when Allen would recount things he had seen from his tower and – although they were short stories that tended to blend together out of similarity – Lavi listened intently.

Everything was – simply put – perfect.

~~

“Hey, Allen.” Lavi sat perched on the window sill, lazily soaking in the sun as he watched his boyfriend putter around the room. “Have you ever thought about leaving this place?  I mean, are you going to stay here the rest of your life?”

There was a long moment of silence as Allen slowing came to a halt.  A breeze swirled through the tower, ruffling Allen’s hair and causing Lavi to shiver.  The smell of winter was in the air.

“You know, when I first came here, I used dream about escaping; returning home and forgetting about…everything.  But, as the year’s passed, I realized that I couldn’t.  Not that I couldn’t escape but I couldn’t return home.  At least not yet.  Not until I’ve fulfilled my promise and maybe not even then.” Allen paused, his body half turned towards Lavi but covered in shadows that made it impossible to see his face.  “Lavi…you shouldn’t come back for a while.”

It felt as if the air had been sucked from his lungs and vertigo hit; the room spun in a way that made Lavi feel sick.

“What?  Why?” he asked, gripping the window frame to keep from falling.  Allen turned, a fake smile plastered on his face.

“Don’t worry about me.  I’ll be fine.  But it won’t be safe for you to be here.  So please, don’t come back during winter.”

~~

As Lavi lay in bed that night, the memory of Allen’s face as he said goodbye haunted him.

_I’ll send Timcampy to get you when it’s safe.  I promise._

With a heavy heart, Lavi closed his eyes and tried to sleep.

 _Allen,_ he thought, _what have you gotten yourself into?_

~~

Winter dragged on longer than usual.  Every day seemed dreary and tiresome.  Even work couldn’t excite him these days.  Bookman had given up reprimanding him and simply kicked Lavi out of the office whenever he became too morose.  His friends weren’t much better – though the number of death threats from Kanda had significantly decreased lately.

But as winter drew to a close and Timcampy still hadn’t made an appearance, Lavi grew restless, and worried.

The weeks grew warmer and with still no sign of Timcampy, Lavi determined he couldn’t wait any longer.  He needed to visit the tower and make sure Allen was safe.

~~

The dark forest was quiet and dead.  The murky river was frozen and the crumbling mountain still covered in snow.  The wolves had left their lair and the hidden nettles had died.  After making his way to the clearing, Lavi watched the window for any sign of Allen.  But although the window was wide open and it was late in the day, the inside of the tower was dark and no sign of the man he loved could be seen.

Frightened, Lavi ran to the base of the tower and cried out, “Oi, Allen!  It’s me!”

A rope fell from above, just barely missing him.  Feeling a slight reprieve in his worry, Lavi grabbed the rope and allowed himself to be pulled up the tower.  When he reached the window, he reached out, grabbed the sill, and tried to jump into the tower.  He was stopped short, however, by Allen standing right inside the window, blocking him from coming in.

“Allen!” Lavi’s heart soared before he registered the tingly warning sensation on the back of his neck.  His heart stopped as he stared into the face of the man he loved but realized something else was looking at him. “A-Allen?”

“Yo.  You must be Lavi.” Allen smiled at him, eyes crinkled in an emotion other than delight. “I’m Nea.”

~~

“I’ve learned a lot about you from Allen.” Nea crooned. “He loves you very much, you know.  I can see it in him.  He believes you’re the one that will accept him once all this is over.  But, you see, that causes a really big problem for me.”

Lavi shifted on the window, acutely aware of how close to the edge he was, and how close Nea was getting.

“I need Allen.  More like, I need his body.” Nea leaned forward, one hand caressing Lavi’s face. “Unfortunately, you’re getting in the way.  I’m sorry but Allen truly does love you.”

As Lavi tumbled from the window, the thorns surrounding the tower getting closer, he considered that Allen was right.  He shouldn’t have come back.  He only hoped they both lived long enough so he could apologize.

~~

As the months passed and turned to years, Lavi continued working in the same office under the tutelage of Bookman.  He never returned to the clearing in the dark forest where the tower hid.  He had been lucky to walk away from the fall with only losing one eye.  It was now too painful a memory to remember.

Darkness fell across the city; street lamps flickered to life as Lavi began to close up shop.  He watched from the window as people hurried home.  A few couples strolled beneath the lamp light, pausing to laugh or point out something interesting.  One man was pointing at the stars, quite possibly explaining their origins and history as Lavi had once done with Allen.  Bitter, Lavi shut the blind and turned back to putting his books away.

The bell above the door tinkled merrily as a customer walked in.

“I’m sorry!  But we just closed.” Lavi called from the back room. “You’ll have to come back-“

The shop floor tilted as Lavi gazed on a familiar face that held gorgeous silver eyes and a beautiful smile.  The world turned upside down and Lavi had to grab the countertop to keep from falling over.

“A-Allen?” The young man smiled sheepishly and scratched the back of his head.

“You know, you’re really hard to find.  I even had Timcampy search for you and it took years.” Allen walked forward and reached for Lavi’s face.  Unconsciously, Lavi flinched and grabbed the hand before it touched him, his eye carefully searching Allen’s.  Allen looked away in shame.

“I guess I deserve that, don’t I?” His eyes returned to Lavi’s face, grief visible in his eyes. “He did that to you, didn’t he?  I’m so sorry.  I wanted to tell you but I didn’t know how and I was worried you’d never return.  I just-“

“How?” Lavi licked his lips as he processed everything that was happening. “Why are you here?  How did you leave?  What happened to…”

“I was cursed.” Allen’s fingers brushed Lavi’s cheek causing him to involuntarily lean into the touch.  A small smile pulled at Allen’s lips. “I’ve been cursed for a long time and I had to wait until I served my purpose.  But after…after what happened with you, I fought against it.  It took a long time but - I’m finally free.”

The only thing Lavi could feel was complete disbelief.  Disbelief that Allen was actually standing before him; disbelief about his story; disbelief that maybe they could finally be happy together.  But as Allen’s lips pressed against his, soft and warm and everything Lavi had dreamed about, it started to sink it.  It would still take days or weeks or even years for it to finally feel real.

But, as Allen’s fingers ran through his hair, Lavi found that he couldn’t care much about the future when his present was already a dream come true.


End file.
